Do Limpet pads work?

sidesaddlegirl

sidesaddlegirl

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11 November 2007
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www.sidesaddlegirl.co.uk
I'm sick of my saddles sliding forward on Hattie. today was the last straw as my side saddle slide forward 4" onto her shoulders WITH a gel-eze non slip numnah AND a mesh no slip numnah (the stuff that is sewn onto the bottom of the Barnsby grip pads).

Both my astride and my side saddle were fitted by qualified saddlers (the side saddler is master saddle who speciliazes in side saddles too). I've tried the Barnsby grip pads and various other non slip things. Both saddles were fitted to her (my side saddle even had a Wykham pad custom made for her), it's just Hattie's conformation.

Anways, The only Limpet I saw on the Limpet website that is big enough to fit my big butted side saddle, is about £68! I am loathe to fork out that much for one if it doesn't work. Do these stop a saddle sliding forward?

Opinions please!
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It definately helped on my ponio, she had no shoulder until she'd grown a bit.

Limpet pad and had an extra girth strap put onto her saddle so results were brill with combination of the two
 
ummmmmmmm not great

I didn't find it particularly grippy particularly after a bit of use.

If I used it on its own I also found that during fast work/jumping the bits under the saddle flaps would slip back and end up creased up behind my saddle. (if that makes sense)

I ended up cutting it off to make it like a prolite pad which I know have with a numnah because I liked its shock absorbing but cant use a prolite as it makes my saddle too narrow.

Mums anglo has no shoulders and saddle will slip forwards if she stops while jumping, she has a point strap which helps. and her saddle is much better than the others we have (made for her) but still not perfect, saddler said it was best he could do!

prolite do saddle stay pads which I quite liked, but I think they would be better with 2, one each side.
 
Not tried a Limpet pad, but did try a Prolite non slip pad (£24? Looks to me just like a bit of neoprene with a few holes in) on daughters Sec A Welshie who had a nasty habit of sticking her head to the floor and pulling first the rider off, then latterly (as the rider developed more sticking power) the rider and saddle forward. It did work a bit, and we do use it under the saddle for showing classes where the saddle has to come off (and no jumping) as we now use a crupper which is MUCH better, she's given up trying to pull the rider off because she can't budge her rider hahahahaha.
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You'll probably need a widget to fit into the saddle at the back with a D ring in order to use a crupper but can highly recommend it for not budging. You may find it takes your horsie a bit to get used to a crupper under the tail, and they don't look the prettiest of ponies with them on (hence we take off for Sec A showing, as I think it emphasises lack of wither whereas with our pony it's more naughtiness than lack of wither), but they look quite comfy so long as you don't get any tail hair caught under, fortunately pony is used to it as she'd previously been used for driving.
 
Trixie wears a Limpet (horrible ugly thing!) but it really does work for her. She is rather round, no withers and without it her saddle will slip. We have had it years, always place it ontop of the saddle in the tack room, and its still in very good condition - just a shame they don't make them more attractive!
 
lol!

I do think the issue with Franks was that his saddle sits quite tight on the points behind the shoulder but is then quite wide to allow his big shoulders to move! so the saddle didn't hold it on tight enough under the flaps.

(oh and he has withers
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I have a prolite non slip and I love it. Star refused to move with a gel-eze, but goes far better in a prolite. Is there one you could borrow before forking out?
 
Thanks guys for the comments!

Unfortunately, everyone elses horses around me have normal conformations and don't need any grip pads so there arn't any I can borrow.
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My sadder did recommend a crupper but don't know if I can use one in dressage and my side saddle doesn't have anything I could attach it to as it doesn't have a d-ring at the back like you see on some pony side saddles and the wykham pad doesn't have separate panels to slide the crupper attachment into like other saddles do.

I don't like the thought of her tail holding all my 13 stone weight plus the side saddle's weight (they are bl**dy heavy things!) either when it's her conformation pushing the saddle forward (long withers, big barrel, narrow shoulders and forward girth groove- basically a saddler's nightmare!).

I've tried the point strap on my side saddle and that and the balance girth don't make a bit of difference when it comes to the saddle shooting forwards.
The saddle is ok at a walk and trotting but cantering and any REALLY forward trot, there it goes!

I did have look at the prolite pad but tbh, I don't think that will make a bit of difference. The grippyness and the thinness look to be about the same as the gel-eze.

hmmm, may have to keep looking for a 2nd hand limpet or save up and buy a new one to try.
 
I have lots of sympathy for you as I have this problem too, and as my mare is a bit unevenly muscled, my saddle goes off to the right as well as forward!
I did attempt to ride her side saddle, but gave up as being a quarter horse she can just stop very quickly which rams the saddle onto her shoulders - not much fun for either of us!
Haven't tried a wykham pad yet - she is having a busy career as a western horse and can't risk making her sore or grumpy at the mo!
Have had lots of experience with other horses and side saddles slipping forward - the clear jelly pad with the holes in it (Stephens?) does work quite well, but expensive and not that durable.
We always used to warm the horses up, put the saddle back in position, girth up and then they would normally stay put for the duration of a show class, dressage test or jumping round.
On this type of horse you probably need to forget about hunting or fun rides side saddle.
At least on an astride saddle there's less pressure on their shoulders so they seem to object less.
For the horse's comfort, we use an American Thin Line pad between the numnah and the saddle - this looks like prolite but is quite firm until warmed by the horse's body. It shock absorbs and minmises the rolling which at least makes our very sensitive mare more comfortable. Laura Dempsey does stock these and can cut them to side saddle shapes, but again they're pretty pricey.
There's no easy answer with this type of horse.
 
I used a Limpet pad on my horse, it kept the saddle still alright, but, it worked like hair removing wax strips on her. The faster we went, the more her shoulders reached forward, the more it waxed her.
It turned her into a bucking bronco in the end, not like her at all.

See if you can find a second hand pad on ebay, if it's no good, put it back on ebay.
http://sports.shop.ebay.co.uk/?_from=R40...&_sacat=382
 
Thanks Dubsie, but my side saddle is long as I'm 5'9" so although I'd LOVE to try your prolite (I'd pay for the postage to try it too!), I think pony size would be a bit too small for me and my huge saddle
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Ironhorse, thanks for the insight with your horse. Yes, I've relegated my side saddle to schooling in the menage, dressage shows and walking hacks only. It's too bad as Hattie is "getting" going with a side saddle and we had a good gallop out in it the other week and it was fun but I can't risk cross country hacking, etc on an unstable saddle as she WILL buck if anything ends up on her shoulders. We were cantering in the field last Monday with the long grass and of course, you know how horses tend to bound over the long grass. Well, the saddle ended up on her shoulders, she bucked and I went flying.

I do have that clear gel pad with the holes (it's a gel-eze) that i bought from the national show. It helps a little but not much.

Ashgrove, yup that's the plan. I'm going to trawl ebay everyday and see if one comes up. i have seen some come up inthe past but they are never long enough for my saddle.
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Ashgrove, yup that's the plan. I'm going to trawl ebay everyday and see if one comes up. i have seen some come up inthe past but they are never long enough for my saddle.
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I got mine from there, I think they were 19" long, and when I realised they weren't for us, I sold them on there for a profit
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